Ben Stafford: Tracks That Shaped My Sound

1 day ago

Ben Stafford is multi-instrumentalist, author and illustrator from Lancashire. We spoke to him about the tracks that shaped his sound for latest release YOU'RE DOING IT!, enjoy!

That’s Us/Wild Combination – Arthur Russell

Arthur Russell has been a constant for me this past year, his album Calling Out Of Context in particular. That’s Us/Wild Combination is a perfect blend of elements that I try to include in my tunes. Drum machines, delayed synths and melodies that don’t quite follow the shape of the song, free to do what they want.

Hejira – Joni Mitchell

Anyone who knows me, knows how much I adore Joni Mitchell and her music. So much so that I probably struggle to sum up how I feel about it! Hejira (and the entire album in general) is one of my favorites from Joni. It really opened my eyes to playing around with chorus a bit more on my guitar, trying to get that expansive sparkling tone she gets on her guitar.

Look Who’s Talking Now – Orlando Weeks

This song has been a constant ever since it came out back in 2021. I remember bumping into Orlando the night before this tune was released. The chord progression is pretty simple, a walk down and up, but the arrangement around it with the synths, it’s just brilliant. Not to mention Orlando’s vocals, a slight nod to Talk Talk’s Mark Hollis, another favorite of mine.

Spirit – Ben Howard

Ben Howard is another constant inspiration for me. What he does with a guitar and the sounds that come out of it, will forever amaze (and sometimes confuse) me. The first time I heard Spirit, was a video of him playing it live shortly before the album Is It? was released. And even then, i knew instantly it was going to be a favourite. Its a perfect blend of Arthur Russell with Ben’s magical wizardry.

Half An Eye – A Blaze Of Feather

This song has been on repeat ever since it dropped in 2021. I had the absolute pleasure of Mickey Smith playing the bass on my new tune ‘the pink and blue’. He really added his own vibe to it and alleviated the song to another level. It’s typical Mickey Smith wizardry, and I love it!